The Swedish Defence Material Administration (FMV) has entered into a contract with Saab for the acquisition of additional manufacturing equipment for the Gripen E fighter jets.
The contract is valued at approximately Skr2.9bn ($304m).
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This procurement is part of FMV’s strategy to ensure the continuous operation of Sweden’s current fleet of Gripen C/D aircraft while simultaneously facilitating the delivery and integration of the Gripen E into the Swedish Armed Forces.
The new equipment will be utilised in the production of Sweden’s order for 60 Gripen E fighters.
Saab aeronautics division head Lars Tossman said: “We are very happy to support the Swedish Air Force to safeguard our air domain. This contract ensures full availability of the Gripen C/D fleet and, at the same time, enables Gripen E to be introduced into the Swedish Armed Forces with new equipment, securing its operational life for decades to come.”
The Gripen E fighter aircraft is designed to counter and defeat advanced future threats.
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By GlobalDataThe fighter jet features the GE F414G engine, high range, can carry “an impressive payload”, a new active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, infrared search and track system (IRST), advanced electronic warfare and communication systems.
This new contract serves as an addition to the original agreement from February 2013 that covered the development and acquisition of the Gripen E model.
Originally, this agreement planned for the reuse of certain components from Sweden’s existing fleet of Gripen C/D jets.
FMV has decided to manufacture this equipment anew in response to current global circumstances and to maintain strategic autonomy and potentially provide support to Ukraine with Gripen aircraft in the future.
This marks the fourth instance where the reuse of existing equipment has been scaled back, leading to a production run for the series of 60 aircraft that will predominantly feature newly manufactured components.
FMV recently placed an order worth Skr1.4bn ($147m) with Saab for the delivery of Giraffe 4A radar systems, along with related services, for the Swedish Armed Forces.
